Mabel is an English female name derived from the Latin amabilis, "lovable, dear". [1]
Amabilis of Riom (died 475) was a French male saint who logically would have assumed the name Amabilis upon entering the priesthood: his veneration may have resulted in Amabilis being used as both a male and female name, or the name's female usage may have been initiated by the female saint Amabilis of Rouen (died 634), the daughter of an Anglo-Saxon king who would have adopted the name Amabilis upon becoming a nun. [2]
Brought by the Normans—as Amable—to the British Isles, the name was there common as both Amabel and the abbreviated Mabel throughout the Middle Ages, with Mabel subsequently remaining common until c. 1700, from which point its usage was largely restricted to Ireland, Mabel there being perceived as a variant of the Celtic name Maeve, [3] until the name had a Victorian revival in Britain, facilitated by the 1853 publication of the novel The Heir of Redclyffe by Charlotte M. Yonge, which features an Irish character named Mabel Kilcoran; Yonge's novel also features a character named Amabel, [4] but her novel only significantly boosted the popularity of the name in the form Mabel, which became immensely popular in both the British Isles and the United States.
At the start of the 20th century, Mabel's popularity began a slow decline which accelerated from the 1930s; the name has seen very light usage since the 1960s. Due to its origin as an abridgement of Amabel it has been surmised that Mabel was originally pronounced with a short A, the name's pronunciation with a long A dating only from its mid-19th-century revival. [5]
Jill is an English feminine given name, a short form of the name Gillian, which in turn originated as a Middle English variant of Juliana. Jill was such a common name that it had an everygirl quality, as in the 15th century English nursery rhyme Jack and Jill. By the 17th century, the name had become a term for a "common street jade," implying promiscuous sexual behavior, and declined in usage in the Anglosphere. Usage of the name increased again in the 20th century. The name was most used in English-speaking countries from the 1930s to the 1970s. It is currently well-used in the Netherlands.
Lucy is an English feminine given name derived from the Latin masculine given name Lucius with the meaning as of light. Alternative spellings are Luci, Luce, Lucie, Lucia, and Luzia.
Joanna is a feminine given name deriving from Koinē Greek: Ἰωάννα, romanized: Iōanna from Hebrew: יוֹחָנָה, romanized: Yôḥānāh, lit. 'God is gracious'. Variants in English include Joan, Joann, Joanne, and Johanna. Other forms of the name in English are Jan, Jane, Janet, Janice, Jean, and Jeanne.
Joan is both a feminine form of the personal name John given to females in the Anglosphere; and the native masculine form of John in the Catalan-Valencian and Occitan languages. In both cases, the name is derived from the Greek via the Latin Ioannes and Ioanna, and is thus cognate with John and related to its many forms, including its derived feminine forms.
'Isabel' is a female name of Spanish origin. Isabelle is a name that is similar, but it is of French origin. It originates as the medieval Spanish form of Elisabeth. Arising in the 12th century, it became popular in England in the 13th century following the marriage of Isabella of Angoulême to the king of England. Today it is sometimes abbreviated to Isa.
Eva is a female given name, the Latinate counterpart of English Eve, which is derived from the Hebrew חַוָּה (Chava/Hava), meaning "life" or "living one", the name of the first woman according to the Hebrew Bible. It can also mean full of life or mother of life. It is the standard biblical form of Eve in many European languages. Evita is a diminutive form, in Spanish.
Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Old Iranian. It has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular throughout the Middle Ages. It became less popular between the 16th and 18th century, but became more common again after this period, becoming the second-most popular female name in the United States in 1903. Since this time, it has become less common, but was still the ninth-most common name for women of all ages in the United States as of the 1990 census.
Philippa is a feminine given name meaning "lover of horses" or "horses' friend", from the Greek Philippos, which is derived from philein, meaning to love and hippos, meaning horse. The English masculine form is Philip, which was formerly the vernacular form for both sexes. The Latinate Philippa was used in official church records for women bearing the name in medieval times, but they were actually called Philip or the French Philippe. The name Philippa came into common use for women in the Anglosphere in the 1800s. Common alternative spellings include Filippa and Phillipa. Less common is Filipa. The name is commonly shortened to the nicknames Pippa, Pippy, Pippita, Pipka, Pippulina, and Pip.
Violet is a female given name which comes from the eponymous flower. As with other such names, its popularity has varied dramatically over time. Flower names were commonly used from about 1880 through about 1910 in the United States, with usage dropping throughout the next 80 years or so; Violet was the 88th most frequent girls' given name in 1900, dropping below position 1000 by 1960. In 1990, the name appeared again in the top 1000 at position 289 and subsequently increased in popularity. It was the 20th most used name for newborn American girls in 2022. It rose rapidly in popularity for American girls born that year, one of several fashionable names that contain a letter v. In 2022, it was the 27th most popular name given to girls in Canada.
Julie is a popular Latin first name which originally comes from the Latin Julia, itself derived from the Latin Julius, which is believed to either stem from Ancient Greek: ἴουλος, romanized: íoulos, lit. 'downy-haired' or Latin: Iovilius, lit. 'devoted to Jove'. It can be a pet form of Julia, Yulie, or Juliette.
Jacqueline is a given name, the French feminine form of Jacques, also commonly used in the English-speaking world. Older forms and variant spellings were sometimes given to men.
Louise and Luise are, respectively, French and German feminine forms of the given name Louis. Louise has been regularly used as a female name in English speaking countries since the middle of the 19th century. It has ranked among the top 100 names given to girls in France, England, Ireland, Scotland, Sweden and Wales in recent years. It last ranked among the top 1,000 first names for girls born in the United States in 1991, but remains a more common middle name.
Alice is a feminine first name with roots in the French and German languages.
Dorothy is a feminine given name. It is the English vernacular form of the Greek Δωροθέα (Dōrothéa) meaning "God's Gift", from δῶρον (dōron), "gift" + θεός (theós), "god". It has been in use since the 1400s. Although much less common, there are also male equivalents in English such as Dory, from the Greek masculine Δωρόθεος (Dōrótheos). Dorofei is a rarely used Russian male version of the name. The given names Theodore and Theodora are derived from the same two Greek root words as Dorothy, albeit reversed in order.
Jenny was originally the diminutive form of Jane, but it is now associated with Jennifer.
Sophie is a feminine given name, another version of Sophia, from the Greek word for "wisdom".
Daisy is a feminine given name. The flower name comes from the Old English word dægeseage, meaning "day's eye". The name Daisy is therefore ultimately derived from this source. Daisy is also a nickname for Margaret because Marguerite, the French version of the latter name, is also a French name for the oxeye daisy.
Ellen is a female given name, a diminutive of Elizabeth, Eleanor, Elena, and Helen. Ellen was the 609th most popular name in the U.S. and the 17th in Sweden in 2004.
Arabella is a female given name, possibly of Greek, Latin, or Celtic origin.
Amabel is a female given name from Latin amabilis 'lovable'. Notable people with this name include: